Football: Napoli refuses to release Polish duo for U21 Euro 2017

The SSC Napoli football club will not allow two of its Polish players, striker Arkadiusz Milik and midfielder Piotr Zieliński, to play in the under-21 European championships in June.

Arkadiusz Milik and Piotr Zieliński. Photo: PZPN.

The Italian club has said that the competition is not on football’s governing body FIFA’s official calendar, and it is therefore not obliged to release them for the championships, which run from 16-30 June.

Milik and Zieliński are both members of Poland’s senior national squad and will play on 10 June against Romania in qualifiers for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Poland will play Slovakia, Sweden and England in the first round of the Under-21 European Championships, which will be hosted by Poland. (vb/pk)